Venus is about to pass directly behind the sun, an event astronomers call "superior conjunction." Coronagraphs onboard the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO) are monitoring Venus as it disappears into the glare:

On June 7th, Venus will be at superior conjunction--a wonderful sight if only we could see it.

Like the Moon, Venus has phases and on June 7th it will be gloriously full. The entire hemisphere facing Earth will be illuminated. Venus's acid-laced clouds are terrific reflectors and a full Venus would surely be visible in broad daylight, an intense pinprick of light in the blue sky.

Venus's passage behind the sun marks an important transition. Earlier this year, Venus was a "morning star." After it emerges from behind the sun, it will become an "evening star" later in June. www.spaceweather.com

On March 8th, Earth and Jupiter will have a close encounter. The giant planet will be "up all night," soaring almost overhead at midnight and not setting until the sky brightens with the twilight hues of sunrise on March 9th. Get the full story from Science@NASA.www.spaceweather.com

There's a full Moon tonight, Monday Feb. 22nd. According to folklore, it has a special name--the "Snow Moon." On average, February is the snowiest month in the USA. Full moonlight reflecting from a snow-covered landscape can make the night very bright, indeed. Bonus: On Tuesday, Feb. 23rd, the waning Snow Moon will be in conjunction with Jupiter--a beautiful close encounter: sky map. www.spaceweather.com

On August 15th, Venus will pass almost directly between Earth and the sun--an event astronomers call "inferior solar conjunction". As Venus approaches the sun, the planet is turning its night side toward Earth, reducing its luminous glow to a thin sliver. Damian Peach sends this image of the narrowing crescent from his private observatory in Selsey, UK:

In the days ahead, the crescent of Venus will become increasingly thin and circular. The horns of the crescent might actually touch when the Venus-sun angle is least on August 15th (7.9o). This is arguably the most beautiful time to observe Venus--but also the most perilous. The glare of the nearby sun magnified by a telescope can damage the eyes of anyone looking through the eyepiece. Anthony J. Cook of the Griffith Observatory has some advice for observers: "I have observed Venus at conjunction, but only from within the shadow of a building, or by adding a mask to the front end of the telescope to fully shadow the optics from direct sunlight. This is tricky with a refractor or a catadioptric, because the optics start at the front end of the tube.

Here at Griffith Observatory, I rotate the telescope dome to make sure the lens of the telescope is shaded from direct sunlight, even through it means that the lens will be partially blocked when aimed at Venus. With our Newtonian telescope, I add a curved cardboard mask at the front end of the tube to shadow the primary mirror." Potential observers should take precautions as outlined above. That said, if you have a GOTO telescope, command it to slew to Venus this evening. The slender cresent is only 12o from the sun on Aug. 8th, and it's a beauty! www.spaceweather.com

The two brightest planets, Venus and Jupiter, are converging in the west for a spectacular side-by-side conjunction. Photographer Cat Connor sends this picture from Mammoth Lakes, California.

The sunset sky show is going to continue for the rest of the month. On June 19th, the crescent Moon joins Venus and Jupiter, forming a bright isosceles triangle in the sunset sky. One night later, on June 20th, the triangle appears again with shifted vertices. Never has a geometry lesson been so beautiful.

The nights of June 19th and 20th are good nights to look through a telescope. Even a small telescope will show you the fat crescent phase of Venus, the cloudtops and largest moons of Jupiter, and the rugged terrain of Earth's own Moon. Swing your optics around the triangle for a heavenly tour.

The main event occurs on June 30th. On that night, Venus and Jupiter will be a jaw-dropping 1/3rd of a degree apart--less than the diameter of a full Moon. You'll be able to hide the pair behind your little pinky finger outstretched at arm's length. Mark your calendar and enjoy the show!www.spaceweather.com

If you love stargazing, there's a date you should mark on your calendar. It's June. That's right, the whole month. Throughout the month of June 2015, the two brightest planets in the night sky are converging for an amazing sunset sky show. At closest approach on June 30th, Venus and Jupiter will be less than 1/3rd of a degree apart. Even now, a month ahead of time, the gathering is beautiful. Leo Caldas sends this picture from Brasilia, Brazil:

"The Hubble Space Telescope flew by the planets just as I was photographing the conjunction," says Caldas. "Perfect timing." In the weeks ahead, Venus and Jupiter will draw steadily closer together. You can see the distance shrink every night. Dates of special interest include June 12th, when Venus passes by the Beehive star cluster. Using binoculars, scan the sky around Venus to observe the cluster. On June 19th, the crescent Moon joins Venus and Jupiter to form a bright isosceles triangle in the sunset sky. One night later, on June 20th, the triangle reappears with shape-shifted vertices. From then until the end of the month, the converging planets will rush together, seemingly on a collision course, but actually en route to a near-miss on June 30th-July 1st. Keep an eye on the sunset sky for the rest of the month.

When the sun goes down tonight, step outside and look up. The Moon and Jupiter are side by side, only about 5o apart in the constellation Cancer. Try to catch them before the evening sky fades to black. The conjunction framed by twilight blue is a beautiful sight. [photo gallery] www.spaceweather.com

FULL WOLF MOON:There's a full Moon tonight and according to folklore it has a special name: the Full Wolf Moon. Arcing high through the winter sky, the bright orb turns night into a simulacrum of day and shines through freezing clouds, producing spectacularice halos. Go outside, take a look, and try not to howl. www.spaceweather.com

VENUS AND MERCURY: Tonight, when the sun goes down, step outside and face west. Mercury and Venus are converging in the sunset sky. Japanese photographer "Shiraishi" sends this picture from Kumagaya-shi, Saitama:

"Venus popped out of the twilight first, then Mercury followed as the sky darkened," says Shiraishi. "To capture the pair I used a Nikon COOLPIX P510 digital camera set at ISO 400 for a 1/6s exposure." Sunset photographers should take note of those settings, because the Mercury-Venus show is just beginning. For the next week, the two planets will draw closer and closer together. On the date of closest approach, Jan. 10th, they will be a scant 0.7 degrees apart--three times closer than they are tonight! The width of your little finger held at arm's length is enough to eclipse the pair. If you can't see Mercury with the naked eye alone, you might be looking too soon after sunset. Wait a while for the twilight to deepen. Or if you have binoculars, aim them at Venus to reel in Mercury. Once you find Mercury, you might be surprised at how bright it appears.

The comet has been growing more visible in recent weeks to those living in the Southern Hempishere and Nasa's Jet Propulsion Laboratory says the comet will reach its nearest position to Earth on January 7, a distance of about 70.2 million kilometres away. Thus, the green-glowing comet will be visible to those in the Northern Hemisphere.

Shining bright red in the heart of the constellation Scorpius, 1st-magnitude star Antares is often mistaken for Mars. In Greek, "Antares" means "rival of Mars" or "anti-Mars," so-named because it is about the same brightness and color as the Red Planet. As September comes to a close, the rivals are converging. Jeff Dai sends this photo of Mars and Antares setting side-by-side behind Mount Balang in Sichuan, China:

"I was looking southwest in the evening sky on Sept. 20th when a conspicuous pair of ruddy objects grabbed my attention," says Dai. "Red planet Mars is moving in for a close encounter with its ancient rival, the red supergiant star Antares." On Sept. 28th and 29th, the nights of closest approach, Mars and Antares will be only a few degrees apart, a conjunction tight enough to fit behind your outstretched palm. Sept. 29th is the best night to look because the Moon will join the display, lining up to form a near-vertical column of heavenly bodies just above the southwestern horizon. Sept. 27th is a good night, too, but for a different reason: A slender crescent Moon will pass very close to Saturn not far from Antares and Mars. Sky maps:Sept. 25, 26, 27, 28, 29. www.spaceweather.com

A shaman, in the dictionary definition, is 'a person regarded as having access to, and influence in, the world of good and evil spirits, especially among some peoples of northern Asia and North America. Typically such people enter a trance state during a ritual, and practise divination and healing.' These images - giving an extraordinary glimpse inside this largely unknown world - have emerged of a conclave held this summer over nine days near the village Khorum-Dag in Tuva Republic. This festival, named 'Call of 13 Shamans' was held in an area of Siberia that retains great respect for shamans and was intended as a show of unity by the planet's most respected practitioners. The shamans began by going to different locations in the mountains for three days of meditation, making rites and holding ceremonies. The timing had been selected to match the natural cosmic cycles and calculations of experts from various theological schools.

Set your alarm for dawn! Venus and Jupiter are converging for a spectacular conjunction in the early morning sky. At closest approach on the morning of August 18th, the two brightest planets in the solar system will be only 0.2o apart. This is what they looked like one day early, August 17th, from the Canadian side of Lake Ontario:

"It was a beautiful conjunction in the pre-dawn sky," says photographer Gary Colwell. "And it will get even better on Monday morning." To see the show, find a place with a good view of the north-northeastern horizon. No telescope is required. Jupiter and Venus are bright enough to see with the naked eye even from light polluted cities. In fact, as Colwell's photo shows, you can see them even after the sun begins to brighten the dawn. A tight conjunction of Venus and Jupiter framed by twilight blue is a great way to start the day. For more information, see this video from NASA. www.spaceweather.com

Venus and Jupiter are converging for a stunning conjunction in the pre-dawn sky. At closest approach on August 18th, the two planets will be just 0.2 degrees apart, tight enough to hide behind the tip of your outstretched pinky. Flying astrophotographer, pilot Brian Whittaker, photographed the converging pair 35,000 feet over Northern Ontario, Canada, on August 12th:"I spotted Jupiter with Venus just 6 days before the super conjunction," says Whittaker. "It was a beautiful view--and it's only going to get better."Observing tips: Look east about 30 minutes before sunrise. A clear view of the horizon is required to see the low-hanging pair. Each morning between now and the 18th the distance between the two will decrease as they converge for their dramatic meeting next Monday. No special optics are required to see the amazingly bright pair, but if you have binoculars, use them. A quick scan of the sky around Venus and Jupiter on August 18th reveals that the two worlds are not alone. The planets are converging right beside M44, the Beehive Cluster. Located about 500 light years from Earth, this busy cluster of stars is barely visible to the naked eye, but it is an easy target for ordinary binoculars. At first glance it might seem that a pair of supernovas has gone off inside the cluster—but that's just Venus and Jupiter passing by. www.spaceweather.com

Mars is approaching Earth for a close encounter in mid-April. As the two planets converge, the red color of Mars is becoming increasingly vivid to the naked eye. This is especially true because Mars is located not far from Spica, a blue-giant star of first magnitude in the constellation Virgo. Each evening when Mars and Spica rise side by side in the eastern sky, the red-blue contrast is eye-catching:

Astronomy professor Jimmy Westlake of Colorado Mountain College took the picture on March 20th, the first night of northern spring, and labeled it to show not only "ruddy Mars and icy-blue Spica," but also two nearby space rocks. "This spring, Mars is looping through the stars of Virgo alongside the large asteroids Ceres and Vesta," explains Westlake. "All three reach opposition next month: Mars on April 8th, Vesta on April 13th, and Ceres on April 15th. Vesta, the nearer and more reflective of the two, appears about a magnitude brighter than Ceres. Both are within easy grasp of binoculars." Look for Mars and Spica rising in the east after sunset, around 9 pm local time. A backyard telescope pointed at Mars will show you more than a red dot. Mars's north polar cap, surface features and clouds are being photographed by amateur astronomers around the world as the red planet grows larger in the eyepiece every night. Browse the gallery for examples: Realtime Mars Photo Gallerywww.spaceweather.com